MedStar Montgomery Medical Center and JSSA Introduce New Inpatient Hospice Care

Together the partners will provide interdisciplinary, personalized end-of-life care through new hospital-based hospice program

OLNEY, Md.  — MedStar Montgomery Medical Center (MMMC) and JSSA, a health and social wellness agency, have announced a partnership to provide hospital-based hospice care. The new offering will allow patients with life-limiting illnesses, whose symptoms are unable to be managed in a typical home setting, the ability to receive around-the-clock medical care from a compassionate interdisciplinary healthcare team in a comfortable environment surrounded by their loved ones.

Families and individuals who qualify for this level of care receive pain and symptom management, as well as therapeutic support from a team of care providers. Emotional and spiritual support will also be provided when needed by licensed therapists and chaplains.

“At MedStar Montgomery, our mission is to provide high-quality, compassionate and personalized care to every patient, beginning at birth and continuing throughout their life,” said Thomas J. Senker, FACHE, president of MedStar Montgomery Medical Center and senior vice president of MedStar Health. “That patient first approach to care extends to end-of-life, which is why we have collaborated with the excellent team at JSSA to bring hospital-based hospice care to our community.”

JSSA and MMMC have collaborated to create the best possible environment for compassionate and comprehensive hospital-based hospice care. Under the new program, MMMC staff will work together with JSSA to meet hospice patients’ needs. JSSA’s interdisciplinary team of caring experts includes a hospice physician, registered nurses, social workers, certified nursing assistants, chaplains, volunteers and bereavement counselors who, alongside the trusted team at MMMC, will work with each patient and their loved ones to determine an individualized plan that best meets their needs and wishes.

“At JSSA we know how difficult it is to navigate end-of-life care. It is one of life’s most consequential moments. For nearly 35 years, we have been providing hospice care wherever our neighbors call home, but sometimes symptom management and the comfort of the patient requires a setting in which they can receive full-time care and medical support. For those moments we knew it was important for families to receive expert medical care in a caring and trusted setting,” said Todd Schenk, chief executive officer of JSSA. “We are thrilled to be working with such an excellent partner, as MedStar Montgomery, to create an inpatient hospice option that will serve patients and families during those most intensive and challenging moments of a terminal illness.”

For more information, visit www.jssa.org or call 301-816-2676.

The addition of the program comes as MMMC marks its 100^th anniversary of the hospital, which has now grown to 117-beds serving the thousands of patients each year. The non-profit, acute care hospital is dedicated to innovating care and continuing to provide compassionate, person-centered care.

ABOUT MEDSTAR MONTGOMERY MEDICAL CENTER:
MedStar Montgomery Medical Center is a 117-bed, not-for-profit hospital serving the greater Baltimore and Washington metropolitan areas. A proud member of MedStar Health, MedStar Montgomery is committed to delivering the latest in modern medicine and medical technology.

ABOUT JSSA:

Life is a series of ordinary moments punctuated by extraordinary ones. An aging parent struggling to live on their own. A child with anxiety starting kindergarten. A family member with autism working toward employment. JSSA is the health and social wellness agency that supports our neighbors through life’s consequential moments. Serving suburban Maryland, northern Virginia and the District of Columbia, our work is built on the commitment to repairing our corner of the world. We believe that to be high quality, care must be rooted in caring. Our team of experts is trained to listen with respect and ask questions to understand the whole you, so we can connect your needs and concerns with the right people who can help.